NORTH  CAROLINA 

UNIVERSITY  MAGAZINE. 


Old  Series  Vol.  XXII.         No.  1.         New  Series  Vol.  X. 


EDITOKS: 

PHI.  DI. 

George  C.  Conner,  W.  E.  Rollins, 

C.  F.  Harvey.  E.  Payson  Willard. 

W  E.  Darden,  I  Business  Managers. 
Howard  E.  Rondthaler,  J  ° 

Published  six  times  a  year  under  the  auspices  of  the  Pilanthropic  and 
Dialetic  Societies.    Subscription,  $1.00.    Single  copy,  20  cents. 


ADOLPHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 

Memorial  Address  Delivered  in  the  Chapel  of  the  University, 
BY  Josephus  Daniels,  Sunday,  May  31st,  1891. 

We  are  gathered  in  the  quiet  hush  of  this  holy  Sabbath  after- 
noon, here  where  he  lived  long  and  well,  in  this  chapel  which 
he  loved,  to  pay  perhaps  the  last  tribute  which  affection  evokes  to 
the  memory  of  Adolphus  W.  Mangum,  who  died  on  the  12th  day 
of  May,  1890.  There  is  not  wanting  appropriateness  in  the  time 
and  place  for  this  last  gathering  of  his  friends.  Already  have  the 
Trustees  of  this  great  University,  which  he  served  with  loving 
fidelity,  placed  in  durable  form  their  estimate  of  his  valued  ser- 
vices. Last  December  in  Wilson  the  annual  conference  of  his 
church,  to  which  his  warmest  and  tenderest  love  clung  to  the  very 
last,  gave  official  expression  to  the  loss  sustained  by  the  church. 
Fellow-soldiers  of  the  cross,  who  had  stood  with  him  upon  the  bat- 
tlements and  sounded  the  warning  to  a  dying  world,  paused  to 
drop  a  tear  at  the  fall  of  a  brave  and  eloquent  comrade.  The 
societies  to  which  he  belonged  were  not  slow  to  pay  their  tributes, 
and  from  every  section  of  the  State,  trustees  and  parents,  who 
had  seen  the  value  of  his  instruction  and  example  in  the  better- 


2 


ABOLPHUS  V/ILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


ment  of  the  lives  of  their  own  boys,  came  letters  of  sweetest  sym- 
pathy and  warmest  love  to  those  bereaved.  But,  perhaps,  of  all 
the  tributes  paid  by  faculty,  trustees,  conferences,  friends,  societies 
and  others,  none  were  more  loving  and  generous  in  the  soitow 
which  alone  touches  aspiring  youth,  than  the  testimony  which 
came  up  from  the  great  body  of  students  who  have  gone  out  from 
the  halls  of  this  venerable  institution  since  its  re-opening  in  1875. 
What  a  cloud  of  witnesses  they  make,  as  from  sorrowing  hearts 
they  bear  testimony  to  the  piety  and  usefulness  of  their  old  pre- 
ceptor. 

I  am  to  speak  to-day  of  one  whom  I  greatly  loved  and  deeply 
venerated — one  whose  confidence  I  enjoyed  and  whose  prayers  for 
me  rested,  as  I  believe,  like  a  benediction  upon  my  head.  It  was 
not  my  good  fortune  to  be  a  student  of  this  University  and  to 
know  him  as  instructor,  and  to  receive  the  benefit  of  his  teachings. 
I  came  to  know  him  well  and  to  esteem  him  in  a  short  stay  in  the 
village,  and  to  continue  the  friendly  intercourse  here  begun 
through  correspondence  and  occasional  meetings  up  to  his  death. 
He  won  my  esteem  by  his  devotion  to  principle,  and  his  purity ;  and 
gained  a  lasting  place  in  my  affections  by  his  solicitude  for  my 
advancement,  his  willing  help  in  good  advice  and  valued  service, 
and  his  prayers  which  I  know  always  followed  me  in  every  under- 
taking. It  has  been  a  sad  pleasure  since  his  death  to  read  some 
of  his  personal  letters  filled  with  fatherly  counsel  and  Christian 
admonition.  ISTeed  I  say  that  holding  him  in  such  esteem,  I  come 
to  the  task  of  estimating  his  life-work  with  grave  doubts  as  to  my 
ability  to  do  so  with  that  judicial  discrimination  which  is  alike  a 
duty  due  to  his  memory  and  to  posterity.  It  is  no  less  easy  for  a 
friend  to  divest  himself  of  partial  admiration,  when  he  comes  to 
speak  in  memory  of  one  much  beloved,  than  for  an  enemy  to 
distort  his  virtues.  I  cannot  forget  that  from  "the  language  of 
mere  eulogy"  the  good  man  whose  memory  we  honor  to-day 
"would  have  recoiled  with  instinctive  and  resolute  disapproval." 
"But  he  would  hardly  chide  me,  I  venture  to  believe,  if  he  knew 
that,  in  obedience  to  the  voice"  of  the  Trustees  of  the  University, 
I  had  come  here  to  tell  you  what  I  remember  of  him  and  sketch 
the  leading  incidents  of  his  life — "to  recall  how  in  him,  as  I  pro- 
foundly believe,  the  grace  of  God  wrought  with  singular  power 


ADOLPHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM.  3 

and  efficacy,  and  how  in  his  natural  characteristics,  enriched  and 
ennobled  by  the  indwelling  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  there  shone 
forth  a  Christian  manhood  at  once  strong  and  pure,  and  so  worthy 
of  our  grateful  imitation." 

Adolphus  Williamson  Mangum  was  born  at  Flat  Eiver,  April 
Ist,  1834.  His  parents  were  Elison  G-.  and  Elizabeth  Mangum, 
whose  father.  Dr.  Harris,  was  a  leading  physician  of  Boyden,  Ya. 
His  father  was  a  solid  and  respected  farmer — not  wealthy  nor 
scholarly,  but  industrious  and  ambitious  for  his  son  who  early 
gave  promise  of  a  brilliant  career.  N"oting  the  mental  calibre, 
ambitious  dreams,  reflective  powers,  and  fondness  for  learning  of 
his  son,  Mr.  Mangum  resolved  to  give  him  the  best  advantages 
and  make  a  great  lawyer  of  him.  Dr.  Mangum's  father  was  the 
first  cousin  of  the  eloquent  and  able  Wiley  P.  Mangum.  ^oi  him- 
self having  a  classical  education,  he  had  always  grealty  admired 
the  gifts  of  his  distinguished  cousin  and  the  hope  of  his  life  was  to 
see  his  son  Adolphus  receive  his  mantle  of  legal  and  oratorical 
greatness  when  he  should  be  gathered  to  his  fathers.  He  sent  his 
son  early  to  South  Lowell  Academy  and  he  was  there  prepared 
for  college  by  Prof  J.  A.  Dean  with  the  view,  in  the  mind  of  his 
father,  of  becoming  a  lawyer.  He  then  entered  Eandolph-Macon 
College,  where  he  graduated  in  1854  with  the  degree  of  A.  B. 
Afterwards  he  received  the  degre  of  A.  M.  He  was  a  good  student 
and  led  his  class  at  college,  winning  not  only  honors  but  the  affec- 
tion of  his  class-mates  and  the  esteem  of  his  instructors.  Although 
he  was  always  attached  to  his  Alma  Mater,  was  a  Trustee  of 
Eandolph-Macon,  at  which  he  delivered  the  alumni  address  several 
years  ago,  and  from  which  in  1879  he  received  the  degree  of  D.  D., 
it  was  not  through  choice  that  he  was  educated  at  that  seat  of  learn- 
ing. He  was  anxious  to  matriculate  at  the  University,  but  through 
the  influence  of  his  maternal  uncle,  who  lived  near  that  college, 
his  father  was  persuaded  to  send  him  to  Eandolph-Macon. 

The  limits  of  this  paper  forbid  more  than  a  passing  allusion  to 
his  youth  and  college  life.  From  a  small  boy  he  was  devoted  to 
nature,  beautiful  scenery,  flowers,  landscape.  As  a  youth  he  was 
fond  of  everything  that  brought  him  close  to  animal  life  and  to 
the  woods  and  flowers.  He  knew  the  name  of  every  bird  and  tree 
and  animal,  and  felt  a  comradeship  with  them.    He  wrote  often  of 


4 


ADOLPHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


rural  life  and  the  pleasures  of  the  country  with  a  charm  born  of 
deep  love  of  the  scenes  of  his  boyhood.  He  had  the  eye  and  the 
instincts  and  tastes  of  a  poet.  Those  instincts  led  him  through 
nature  up  to  God.  When  quite  a  boy,  running  before  his  parents 
on  a  Sunday  afternoon,  as  they  walked  through  the  fields  of  their 
country  home,  he  heard  them  talking  very  earnestly.  Little  did 
they  reckon  that  his  young  mind  would  follow  them  or  that  all 
they  said  impressed  him  niore  than  the  butterflies  he  chased. 
Tired  of  his  play,  he  ceased  running  and  came  to  walk  beside  his 
mother  who,  with  a  fervor  not  often  exhibited,  put  her  hands 
solemnly  on  his  head  and  said  to  her  husband  "this  is  to  be  our 
preacher."  It  profoundly  impressed  him  then  arid  ever  afterwards. 
It  was  the  earliest  awakening  of  the  heavenly  call  to  preach,  and 
that  "laying  on  of  hands"  by  a  fond  mother  on  that  solemn  Sab- 
•bath  evening  was  a  consecration  to  the  high  office  of  a  priest 
which  was  recorded  by  the  angels;  and  ratified  when,  at  Salisbury 
in  1860,  Bishop  Paine  received  him  as  an  elder  with  solemn  cere- 
monies into  the  rank  of  those  holy  men  who  minister  at  God's 
altar. 

It  was  largely  through  the  example  and  teachings  of  his  moth- 
er that  his  life  was  hid  with  Christ  in  God  and  that  he  became, 
like  Samuel,  dedicated  from  his  j^outh  to  the  service  of  the  Most 
High.  Blessings  upon  her  and  upon  a  land  full  of  christian  moth- 
ers whose  highest  ambition  for  their  boys  is  to  see  them  humble, 
devoted  christians. 

At  Eandolph-Macon  college  he  was  not  only  faithful  in  his 
studies,  but  took  a  deep  interest  in  his  own  spiritual  welfare  and  the 
betterment  of  the  lives  of  his  companions,  having  been  converted 
at  Mt.  Bethel  church,  the  church  of  his  mother,  in  August  1849. 
During  those  days  he  kept  a  diary.  It  contains  the  reflections  of 
a  boy  of  poetic  temperament  and  religious  convictions.  There  is 
an  entry  in  that  diary — made  April  25th  1853,  when  he  was 
twenty  years  old,  and  at  the  risk  of  making  this  memoir  long  I  quote 
this  entry.  It  is  the  key  to  his  whole  life,  and  is  an  example  which 
is  well  worthy  of  em.ulation. 

"Eandolph-Macon  College,  April  25th,  1533,  10  o'clock  A. 
M.  I  am  now  forcibly  impressed  with  the  fact  that  it  is 
essentially   necessary   for    the    enjoyment   of  the  great  reli- 


ADDLPHU8  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


5 


gion  of  God,  that  he  who  professes  this  religion'  should  have  stated 
times  for  the  prayerful  reading  of  God's  Holy  Bible  ;  stated  times 
for  engaging  in  sacred  prayer  to  God ;  and  stated  times  for  calm 
and  serious  meditation  on  God  and  all  good.  Convinced  of  the  ne- 
cessity of  these  things,  I  do  hereby  record  the  religious  duties 
which  I  respectively  wish  to  perform,  with  the  time  that  I  wish  to 
perform  them  each  day ;  and  in  so  doing  do  most  earnestly  request 
the  aid  of  God's  blessed  spirit  that  I  may  have  the  promptness  to 
perform  them. 

1st.  Immediately  after  breakfast  I  design  spending  30  min- 
utes in  reading  religious  books,  and  in  praying  privately  to  God. 

2nd.  At  twelve  o'clock  I  design  spending  15  minutes  in  the 
same  manner. 

3rd.  After  supper  I  wish  to  take  a  walk  and  meditate  on  the 
goodness  etc.  of  God. 

4th.  I  design  spending  twenty  minutes  every  night  in  read- 
ing the  Bible  and  praying,  commencing  at  9  1-2  o'clock. 

To  each  of  the  duties  I  hope  and  trust  that  I  shall  be  enabled 
diligently  to  adhere.  When  circumstances  will  not  permit  me  to 
attend  to  my  private  devotions  at  the  fixed  time,  I  design  attend- 
ing to  them  as  soon  afterwards  as  is  in  anywise  practicable. 

(Signed)  A.  W.  Mangum." 

This  was  not  merely  tho  forming  of  a  purpose  to  perform  his 
religious  duties  made  in  an  hour  of  temporary  fervor.  It  was  the 
deliberate  conviction  of  an  earnest  young  man  who  for  forty  years 
observed  this  resolution  made  in  the  spring  time  of  life.  It  will 
take  no  profound  thinker  to  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the  faith- 
ful observance  of  these  religious  duties  gave  him  the  moral  force 
to  impress  himself  upon  the  religious  and  educational  thought  of 
the  State. 

After  graduation  he  returned  home  to  receive  the  love  and  ad- 
miration of  his  mother  and  to  gratify  the  pride  of  his  father's 
heart.  He  had  given  his  son  more  advantages  than  his  condition 
permitted  without  some  sacrifices,  but  these  he  gladly  made  in  the 
fond  expectation  of  seeing  him  take  a  high  position  at  the  bar.  It 
was  a  great  disappointment  to  his  father  when  his  son,  whom  he 
had  prepared  for  the  bar,  resolved  to  abandon  all  hope  of  prefer- 
ment in  the  law  and  become  a  circuit  rider.    In  those  days  when 


6 


ADOLPHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


circuit  riders  did  not  wear  beavers  and  when  a  circuit  embraced  a 
whole  county  and  sometimes  a  Congressional  District,  and  the  sal- 
ary was  meager  in  the  extreme,  it  is  no  wonder  that  the  fond  and 
proud  father  was  offended  that  his  talented  son  should  dash  all  his 
hopes  to  the  ground  and  join  the  band  of  unselfish  and  holy  men 
whose  labors  through  hardships  and  privations  rivalled  the  labors 
of  the  ministry  in  apostolic  times.  Wounded  and  grieved  at  his 
son's  abandonment  of  the  law  and  the  honors  which  come  to  those 
who  make  it  a  jealous  mistress,  it  ought  not  to  surprise  us  that  Eli- 
son  Mangum  lost  his  temper  and  wrote  to  his  son  strong  words 
of  disapproval  of  his  course  which  he  thought  led  only  to  poverty 
and  privation.  He  saw  not  then  the  glory  and  the  crown  prepared 
for  those  who  wait  on  Him— of  Him  who  careth  for  those  who 
leave  father  and  mother  and  houses  and  lands  to  preach  His  gospel. 
He  closed  his  letter  to  his  son  by  saying  that  if  he  had  known  he 
would  employ  his  talents  in  no  higher  avocation  than  as  a  cir- 
cuit rider  he  would  not  have  spent  the  money  he  had  expended  in 
his  education.  This  was  a  great  sorrow  to  Dr.  Mangum  who  vvas 
grateful  for  his  father's  love  and  sacrifices  for  him.  With  filial 
love  he  replied  kindly  and  gently.  But,  with  that  faculty  for  doing 
the  duty  to  which  he  was  called  and  not  allowing  opposition  to 
deter  him  an  iota,  be  made  application  to  preach,  and  in  1856  he 
was  admitted  on  trial  to  the  N.  0.  Conference  and  was  first  appointed 
junior  preacher  on  Hillsboro  circuit.  In  1858-9  he  was  pastor 
of  the  Methodist  church  in  Chapel  Hill  and  while  here  carried  on  a 
revival  which  resulted  in  the  conversion  of  112  souls,  many  of  them 
be'ing  students.  In  1860  he  was  pastor  of  Eoanoke  circuit  and 
greatly  endeared  himself  to  the  people  of  that  county.  In  1861  he 
was  sent  as  pastor  to  Salisbury  and  in  the  latter  part  of  that  year 
he  went  as  chaplain  to  the  6th  JST.  C.  regiment.  In  1863  he  was 
pastor  at  Goldsboro  where  he  won  all  hearts  and  on  Feb.  24th 
1864  he  was  happily  married  to  Miss  Laura  J.  Overman,  daughter 
of  Mr.  Wm.  Overman,  of  Salisbury.  It  was  a  love  match  and  * 
throughout  a  long  married  life  there,  was  perfect  happiness  and 
tender  love.  He  often  told  how,  as  a  lover,  he  would  leave  his 
books  and  sermon-making  and  go  the  depot  to  await  the  coming 
of  the  train  that  would  bring  a  letter  from  his  promised  wife  in 
Salisbury.    He  never  forgot  that  his  wife  was  his  sweetheart,  and 


ADOLFHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


7 


if  asked  how  long  the  honeymoon  lasted  he  would  have  directed 
the  inquirer  to  ask  one  who  had  been  married  longer  than  he. 
Conspicuous  in  his  life  was  his  intense  devotion  to  his  family.  He 
was  a  wise,  loving  father.  He  made  his  children  his  friends.  He 
racked  his  brain  to  give  them  all  enjoyment  which  seemed 
to  him  innocent.  To  his  wife  he  was  ever  a  loyal,  tender  lover. 
He  exacted  obedience  from  his  children,  but  it  was  not  irksome  to 
them.  They  saw  how  desirous  he  was  of  their  happiness  and  they 
felt  grateful  to  him  and  cheerfully  submitted  to  his  restraints. 
His  fireside  was  of  the  happiest.  He  played  and  sang  with  his 
girls  and  entered  into  the  sports  of  his  boys.  He  played  the  vio- 
lin well  and  sang  a  good  song. 

I  will  be  pardoned,  in  alluding  to  his  happy  married  life,  for 
quoting  from  a  letter  which  his  heart  prompted  him  to  write  to 
me  three  years  ago  upon  my  approaching  marriage : 

"May  God  bless  you  both  abundantly  forever.  Put  these 
rules  in  your  united  heart:  (1)  JSTo  secrets  from  one  another ; 
(2)  Don't  expect  human  beings  to  be  absolutely  perfect ;  (3) 
There  is  no  union  without  compromise  of  will;  (4)  Love  and 
peace  are  cheap  at  any  price  but  principle ;  (5)  There  is  no 
such  thing  as  happy  marriage  except  where  both  hearts  are  true 
to  God." 

These  rules  were  those  which  had  safely  carried  his  matri- 
monial ship  into  a  peaceful  harbor. 

There  is  no  period  in  the  life  of  Dr.  Mangum  that  presents  the 
true  unselfishness  of  his  character  in  stronger  light  than  the  years 
of  the  war.  He  was  an  intense  Southerner — believed  firmly  in  the 
doctrine  of  the  lost  cause  and  loved  the  Confederate  soldiers.  A 
talented  alumnus  told  me  that  once  he  found  Dr.  Mangum  alone 
in  Phi  Hall.  He  had  been  looking  at  the  portraits  of  Gen,  Petti- 
grew  and  of  other  Confederate  leaders.  His  eyes  were  filled  with 
tears.  He  said  in  a  half  subdued,  half  musical  tone:  "It  cannot 
be  that  all  these  precious  lives  were  spent  for  naught."  He  had 
strong  convictions  that  southern  morals  and  manners  were  better 
than  northern.  He  was  an  uncompromising  opponent  to  the  doc- 
trine that  the  newest  teaching  and  thought  from  the  north  was  the 
best.  He  refused  to  concede  that  the  grammar  and  pronunciation 
in  vogue  in  the  best  circles  of  the  north  are  better  than  that  in 


8 


ABOLPHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


voffue  in  the  best  southern  circles.  This  love  of  his  section  and 
belief  in  its  superiority,  strong  in  his  mature  years,  was  naturally 
more  intense  and  deep-seated  in  the  ardor  of  youth.  Entering  the 
ministry  just  before  the  sections  joined  battle,  he  took  a  deep  inter- 
est in  the  controversies  which  resulted  in  the  bloody  visage  of  war. 
He  had  no  patience  with  the  advocates  of  abolition.  He  then  be- 
lieved that  the  best  place  for  the  negro  was  in  slavery,  and  that 
there  was  no  conflict  between  slave-owning  and  the  Bible,  provided 
masters  were  kind  and  just;  and  most  of  them  were.  Enter- 
taining these  views,  his  heart  was  in  the  Lost  Cause.  On  the  first 
call  for  troops,  Col.  Chas.  F.  Fisher,  of  Salisbury,  at  once  began  to 
form  his  regiment,  the  famous  6th  C.  Dr.  Mangum  was  then 
Methodist  pastor  at  Salisbury.  Young,  hopeful,  impetuous  and  full 
of  zeal,  he  entered  fully  into  the  ambitions  of  the  young  soldiers  of 
the  south.  Upon  the  organization  of  Col.  Fisher's  regiment,  he 
was  elected  chaplain.  His  great  popularity  among  the  young  men 
made  them  desirous  of  having  him  in  the  company  and  they  pre- 
vailed upon  him  to  accept  the  position.  Early  in  June  he  joined 
the  regiment  at  Company  Shops,  where  the  several  companies  were 
ordered  to  assemble  for  the  purpose  of  drilling  and  making  ready 
for  the  campaign  that  awaited  them  upon  the  fields  of  Yirginia. 
A  few  weeks  thereafter  they  left  for  the  front  and  arrived  just  in 
time  to  take  part  in  the  first  battle  of  Manassas — indeed  just  in 
time,  as  many  believe,  to  save  the  day  for  the  Confederacy.  The 
battle  was  in  full  blast  when  they  arrived  upon  the  field  and  one 
wing  of  the  southern  army  was  in  full  retreat.  Col.  Fisher  and 
many  of  his  brave  men  were  killed  in  that  engagement,  among 
their  number  being  Lieut.  Preston  Mangum,  only  son  of  the  dis- 
tinguished orator  Wiley  P.  Mangum.  He  was  a  near  kinsman  of 
Dr.  Mangum,  and  he  felt  it  his  sorrowful  duty  to  carry  his  body 
home  and  console  those  who  were  bereaved  by  the  death  of  the 
lovable  and  aspiring  young  son  of  a  noble  father. 

Of  the  young  soilder  it  is  true  that 

"The  bravest  are  the  tenderest 
The  loving  are  the  daring." 

He  then  returned  to  his  regiment,  where  he  remained  until 
the  session  of  his  conference,  when  he  was  again  appointed  pastor 
at  Salisbury.    He  was  afterwards  appointed  to  Goldsboro,  but  in 


ABOLPHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


9 


1865  was  again  returned  as  pastor  to  the  Salisbury  church.  It  was 
while  pastor  of  that  church  that  he  rendered  the  most  faithful,  the 
most  difficult  and  the  holiest  and  sweetest  of  the  services  of  his 
useful  life.  There  were  several  large  hospitals  located  in  Salisbury 
during  the  entire  war.  He  visited  these  hospitals  daily  and  min- 
istered spiritually  and  otherwise  to  the  wounded  soldiers  who  lan- 
guished there.  He  attended  the  trains  as  they  passed  on  south 
with  the  wounded,  carrying  provisions,  and  cheering  with  his  sweet 
and  tender  words  many  who  were  suffering.  His  labors  were  un- 
tiring. He  could  not  do  enough  for  the  Confederate  soldiers — his 
heart  bled  for  them  in  their  sufferings  and  his  prayer  was  that  they 
might  win  the  fight  of  faith  and  come  out  conquerors  through 
Jesus.  Noble  was  his  devotion  to  the  Confederate  soldiers,  his 
christian  love  and  fellowship  was  best  displayed  in  spending  his 
strength  in  ceasless  efforts  to  minister  to  the  comfort  and  spiritual 
condition  of  the  Federal  soldiers  who  were  in  prison  in  Salisbury. 
Some  11,000  soldiers  of  the  Federal  army  died  in  the  Salisbury 
prison  and  noM^  lie  buried  in  the  Federal  Cemetary.  His  love  of 
his  fellow-man  knew  no  section.  Intensely  southern  as  he  was,  he 
was  a  better  christian  than  a  partisan.  He  visited  these  Federal 
soldiers  in  their  prisons,  preached  to  them,  prayed  with  them, 
and  pointed  them  to  the  Savior.  He  was  a  welcome  visitor  at 
that  prison  and  did  what  he  could  to  relieve  their  sufferings.  His 
sympathetic  nature  was  deeply  touched  by  the  condition  of  these 
prisoners.  Many  were  the  letters  he  wrote  to  loved  ones  faraway 
to  tell  them  of  the  death  of  a  poor  soldier  who  wanted  to  send  a 
last  message  to  those  he  held  most  dear.  And  if  he  could  add  "he 
died  believing  in  Jesus"  it  would  make  Dr.  Mangum's  heart  glad. 
Naturally  this  strain  told  greatly  upon  a  nature  so  sympathetic 
and  a  body  never  over-strong.  It  reduced  him  almost  to  a  shadow 
and  destroyed  his  nervous  system.  His  friends  do  not  think  that 
his  nerves  were  ever  restored  to  their  normal  condition. 

One  of  the  last  public  addresses  made  by  Dr.  Mangum  was 
delivered  before  the  Historical  Society  of  this  University  upon 
"Prison  Life  in  Salisbury."  The  theme  was  one  of  great  interest 
to  him,  and  to  his  audience.  In  that  address  he  only  half  covered 
the  ground  and  proposed  finishing  the  address  at  a  subsequent 
meeting  of  the  Society.    But  his  health  was  shattered,  and 


10 


AD OLPB  US  WILLIAMSON  MANG  JIM. 


though  lingering  more  than  a  year,  he  never  had  the  time  to 
deliver  the  second  half  of  his  address.  However  he  finished  the 
account  he  had  begun  and  left  the  manuscript,  which,  when  pub- 
lished will  be  a  valuable  contribution  to  the  history  of  prison  life 
of  the  war.  It  is  one  of  his  last  productions,  and  ought  to  be 
widely  circulated.  It  would  correct  false  rumors  and  give  the 
truth  of  prison  life  in  the  Confederacy. 

The  limits  of  this  memoir  prevent  any  extended  synopsis  and 
extract  from  that  interesting  address.  A  day  or  two  ago  I  read  it 
to  a  few  friends  and  as  the  horrible  and  revolting  results  of  war 
were  graphically  pictured  by  his  graphic  pen,  they"  were  deeply 
moved  and  could  not  restrain  the  tears.  In  that  prison  it  was 
imposasible  to  obtain  sufficient  medicine  which  the  Federal  gov- 
ernment made  a  contraband  of  war,  and  the  privations  and  hunger 
which  poverty  enforced  taught  the  lesson  indelibly  that  w^ar  is 
hell.  Bibles  were  very  scarce.  Dr.  Mangum  preached  to  the 
prisoners,  and  used  the  only  Testament  he  had,  telling  them  dur- 
ing the  discourse  that  he  intended  presenting  it  to  one  of  them. 
"I  was  touched,"  he  says,  "by  their  eagerness  to  get  it,  quite  a 
number  pressing  up  with  expectant  looks."  He  endeavored  to 
secure  reading  for  the  prisoners  and  wrote  to  the  Tract  Society  at 
Eichmond.  But  there  was  nothing  there  to  be  sent.  Eev.  Mr. 
Bennett  had  gone  to  London  to  make  arrangement  to  get  some 
Bibles  and  Testaments. 

In  that  same  address,  speaking  of  the  few  religious  privileges 
of  the  miserable  prisoners,  he  adds:  "But  I  have  seen  th*^  light  of 
heaven  in  the  eye  of  the  suffering  captive  and  heard  from  his  lips 
the  glorious  eloquence  of  salvation.  From  the  tongue  of  another 
I  have  listened  to  the  rich  avowals  of  Christian  hope  and  confi- 
dence, and  heard  the  failing,  almost  inaudible  voice  mutter: 
'Come  unto  me  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I  will 
give  you  rest.'  These  are  glorious  words.  And  doubtless  amid  the 
gloom  and  horror  of  that  old  prison,  there  was  many  an  upward 
glance  of  the  heart — many  a  struggle  and  triumph  of  faith — many 
a  thrill  of  redeeming  love  and  heavenly  hope  which,  all  unknown 
to  friend  or  foe,  were  recognized  by  Him  whose  name  is  love  and 
who  is  mighty  to  save." 

After  the  war  he  was  pastor  at  Salisbury  one  year  and  in  1866 


ADOLFBUS  WILLIAMSON  MAN  GUM. 


11 


rode  Orange  circuit.  In  1867  he  was  appointed  agent  of 
Greensboro  Female  College  and  made  a  trip  to  the  north  to  raise 
money  to  aid  in  its  re-building.  In  1868-9  he  was,  at  his  request, 
returned  to  Orange  circuit  where  he  could  nurse  his  father  who 
died  in  1869.  Long  before  this  his  father  had  not  only  become 
reconciled  to  having  his  son  worthily  wear  the  honors  and  bear 
the  burdens  of  a  Methodist  circuit  rider,  but  actually  rejoiced  that 
he  had  chosen  "the  better  part"  against  his  own  remonstrance. 
In  1870  Dr.  Mangum  was  pastor  at  Greensboro,  and  in  1871  at 
Charlotte.  In  1872  he  became  pastor  of  Edenton  Street  Methodist 
church,  Raleigh,  and  for  nearly  four  years  filled  the  metropolitan 
pulpit  of  his  church  at  the  capital,  winning  reputation  and  attach- 
ing himself  warmly  not  only  to  his  own  congregation  but  to  the 
leading  men  in  the  other  churches  as  well.  So  highly  was  he 
esteemed  in  Raleigh  that  in  1887  several  of  the  leading  members 
of  Edenton  Street  Methodist  church  wrote  to  him  requesting  that 
he  resign  his  chair  at  the  University  and  again  become  their 
pastor.  He  loved  to  preach  and  was  strongly  inclined  to  return  to 
the  ranks  of  the  itinerants,  but  his  convictions  of  duty  compelled 
him  to  remain  at  the  XJniversit}^.  He  was  a  clear  and  animated 
preacher  and  occasionally  rose  to  an  eloquence  seldom  surpassed. 
He  was  fluent  and  preached  with  great  ease.  His  rhetoric  was 
ornate  and  his  figures  were  clothed  with  beauty  and  grace.  His 
descriptive  powers  were  of  the  best,  particularly  when  he  pictured 
the  woods  or  the  fields,  or  portrayed  the  love  of  God.  He  was  a 
man  of  poetic  temperament,  of  warm  and  tropical  fancy,  of  ready 
command  of  diction  that  was  full  and  flowing  and  that  at  times 
was  intensely  fervid  and  now  and  then  rose  to  the  heights  of  a 
kindling  eloquence.  He  preached  "Christ  and  Him  Crucified" 
and  sought  to  win  men  to  follow  in  His  steps.  He  was  ambitious, 
but  he  subordinated  everything  to  the  object  of  his  preaching,  the 
winning  of  souls  to  Christ.  His  courage  in  the  pulpit  was  Pauline. 
He  never  spared  to  denounce  social  laxities  for  fear  he  might 
strain  social  ties.  The  insubordination  of  children  to  home  rule 
and  discipline — tiie  slackening  of  vigilance  in  domestic  government 
and  in  the  relations  of  servant  and  master,  provoked  his  sharp  and 
feark^ss  censure.  He  had  a  great  objection  to  publicity  of  women, 
even  in  good  works.    Church-fairs  and  church-concerts  were  not 


12  ADOLFHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


approved  methods  with  him  for  raising  church  funds,  and  women 
on  the  platform  roused  all  his  antagonism.  He  thought  that  no 
woman  who  attended  to  her  duties  at  home  as  she  ought  would 
ever  be  found  there.  I  never  saw  any  one  who  valued  more  highly 
personal  purity.  His  talks  on  this  subject  were  peculiarly  vivid 
and  strong,  and  it  was  a  virtue  which  he  sought  above  all  things 
to  impress  upon  the  students  and  upon  all  young  men  with  whom 
he  came  in  contact. 

I  come  now  to  speak  of  his  connection  with  the  University 
and  his  labor  here.  Elected  to  the  chair  of  Literature  and  Mental 
and  Moral  Philosophy,  upon  the  re-organization  of  the  University, 
he  entered  upon  his  work  with  zeal  and  success.  He  had  an  active 
mind  and  retentive  memory.  Until  the  disease,  which  finally 
killed  him,  poisoned  his  blood  and  diminished  his  nervous  powers 
long  before  he  was  stricken  at  Newbern,  he  was  a  diligent 
student.  Owing  to  the  poverty  of  the  University,  his  work  was 
so  extensive,  covered  such  a  variety  of  great  subjects,  that  he  had 
no  opportunity  to  distinguish  himself  as  a  specialist.  When  the 
increase  of  the  University  allowed  the  Trustees  to  give  some  of  his 
studies  to  others,  he  began  a  wide  course  of  reading  in  his  depart- 
ment, but  was  interrupted  in  the  midst  of  his  labors  by  the  insidi- 
ous attacks  of  his  fatal  disease.  His  teaching  was  full  of  serious 
hope.  He  inspired  a  belief  in  all  his  students  that  no  life  based 
upon  true  principles  would  fail.  He  said  enthusiastically  to  one 
student:  "  Yes,  sir,  a  life  devoted  to  duty  is  the  grandest  thing  on 
earth  ;  it  cannot  fail." 

As  a  college  professor  he  was  dignified  and  commanded  the 
respect  of  the  young  men  whom  he  taught,  but  in  his  deportment 
there  was  nothing  of  the  starch  ot  the  shroud.  His  nature  was  so 
genial  and  free  from  pretense,  that  it  would  have  revolted  at  the 
stilts  upon  which  some  college  professors  mount  and  uneasily 
and  ostentatiously  attempt  to  walk  over  the  heads  of  the  young 
men  they  instruct.  He  never  essayed  to  dazzle  his  students  with 
an  exhibition  of  learning  or  to  impress  them  with  a  display  of 
pedantry.  Toward  them  he  was  frank,  unaffected  and  sincere.  He 
taught  them  conscientiously,  but  when  the  lesson  was  finished  he 
did  not  feel  that  his  responsibility  ended  and  that  the  student  had 
no  further  claim  upon  him.    He  respected  and  held  inviolate  the 


ADOLFHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM.  13 


responsibility  which  the  calling  of  teacher,  not  to  speak  of  that 
higher  call  to  the  ministry,  imposed  upon  him.  The  student  is,  in 
a  sense,  the  plaster  in  the  hand  of  the  moulder.  In  many  ways 
the  impression  made  upon  him  by  the  teacher  fixes  his  destiny — 
not  alone  in  this  world,  but  often  in  the  eternal  world  as  well.  Dr. 
Mangnm  felt  this  truth  deeply  and  sought  to  inspire  every  young 
man  who  came  into  his  class-room  with  loftiest  and  holiest  pur- 
poses. He  set  a  daily  example  to  scholars  and  teachers  which  is 
the  same  that  the  world's  greatest  teacher  has  exemplified  by  his 
life.  It  is,  in  a  word,  that  neither  book-learning,  nor  dry  and 
siccant  scholasticism,  nor  ancient  lore,  nor  modern  science  are 
comparable,  in  lasting  influence,  with  deep  personal  interest  in  a 
boy's  right  living. 

Never  again,  as  in  college,  will  a  boy  sit  at  the  feet  of  instruc- 
tors ready  to  be  guided  by  them  into  the  paths  of  literature, 
science,  law  and  religion.  Woe  be  unto  that  instructor  of  the 
youth  who  divorces  religion  from  learning,  or  who  is  so  wrapped 
up  in  science  that  he  cannot  point  out  the  hand  of  God  in  all  that 
he  seeks  to  impart.  Few  ministers  of  the  gospel  of  the  Son  of  God 
have  such  ready  access  to  plastic  hearts  as  the  college  professor. 
Every  year  they  infuse  love  of  knowledge  into  aspiring  young 
hearts,  and  every  year  they  send  out  young  men  who  are  to  lead 
the  world  of  intellectual  thought.  Alas!  how  often  it  is  that  the 
professor  is  so  indiff'erent  to  the  claims  of  religion,  or  is  so  en- 
grossed in  his  studies,  or  is  negatively  skeptical  that  the  young 
hearts  receive  no  moral  or  religious  awakening  from  four  years 
contact,  and  goes  out  into  the  world  impressed  with  the  transcen- 
dent value  of  knowledge  and  wisdom,  but  has  had  no  impression 
from  his  instructor  and  guide  to  "seek  first  the  kingdom  of  God 
and  His  righteousness,"  and  with  all  his  getting  to  get  "under- 
standing." 

There  never  has  been  a  professor  at  the  University  whose 
influence  for  good  was  wider  or  more  lasting  than  the  good  man 
whose  memory  we  honor  to-day.  His  active  and  fatherly  interest 
in  the  moral  and  spiritual  welfare  of  the  students  was  realized  and 
appreciated  by  all  who  came  in  contact  with  him  and  his  social 
and  genial  disposition  brought  him  into  friendly  relations  with  all 
who  belonged  to  the  student  body  during  his  connection  with  the 


14  ADOLFHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


institution. TJ" And  even  in  those  instances  in  which  his  influence 
for  good  and  his  personal  solicitude  for  right-doing,  expressed  in 
private  interviews  sought  by  him,  were  not  at  the  time  effectual  in 
bringing  about  immediate  reformation,  they  remained  in  the 
memory  of  the  erring  boy  and  often  eventually  brought  him  to  his 
senses  and  stimulated  him  to  an  effort  at  better  living.  He  always 
appealed  to  the  best  instincts  of  the  students,  their  sense  of  right 
and  honor  and  the  obligations  of  morality  and  religion.  In  his 
hands  these  never  became  weapons  of  offense;  the  student  never 
resented  his  admonition  and  never  felt  that  his  advice  was  uncalled 
for  and  oflScioua.  His  sympathy  was  so  spontaneous  and  expressed 
with  so  much  delicacy,  that  his  reproof  left  none  of  that  sting 
which  is  so  often  unintentionally  inflicted  by  well  meaning  but 
tactless  friends,  upon  young  minds  suffering  from  repentance  for 
wrong-doing. 

Whenever  he  saw  a  student  going  wrong  he  was  impelled  by 
his  sense  of  duty,  as  well  as  his  kindly  nature,  to  interpose  his 
influence  and  advice.  I  remember  talking  recently  with  one  alum- 
nus, who  had  become  distinguished  in  his  profession,  of  an  instance  in 
which  Dr.  Mangum's  kindness  and  delicate  thoughtfulness  pro- 
duced marked  results.  The  young  man,  who  is  and  was  then  a 
high-strung  and  spirited  fellow,  had  unfortunately  gone  off  on 
some  pleasure  excursion  and  became  intoxicated.  It  was  his  first 
experience  and  he  was  greatly  mortified  and  humiliated.  Dr. 
Mangum  who  had  heard  of  it  went  to  see  him  in  reference  to  it, 
and  said  to  him  that  he  should  not  report  the  occurence  to  the 
faculty  as  he  believed  the  offense  was  the  first  and  knew  that  no 
member  of  the  faculty  could  regret  it  more  than  did  the  offender  and 
that  he  should  not  even  request  him  to  pledge  himself  not  to  repeat 
the  offence;  that  he  relied  entirely  upon  the  young  man's  sense  of 
right  and  his  duty  to  himself  and  the  University  as  a  preventative 
of  further  violation  of  college  rules  in  that  direction.  So  full  of 
kindness,  thoughtfulness  and  tact  was  the  good  doctor's  admonition 
that  he  resolved  that  it  should  never  be  said  of  him  again  that  he 
was  drunk,  and  never  from  that  day  to  this  has  he  been  under  the 
influence  of  intoxicating  liquors.  The  course  of  treatment  adopted 
by  Dr.  Mangum  was  exactly  adapted  to  the  needs  of  the  student. 
A  public  disclosure  and  a  requirement  that  he  should  take  the 


ADOLFHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM.  15 


pledge  would,  in  all  probability,  have  wounded  his  self-respect  and 
carried  him  into  other  excesses  irf  order  to  alleviate  the  suffering 
which  such  a  course  would  have  inflicted  upon  his  sensitive  spirit. 
He  never  speaks  of  Dr.  Mangum  except  in  terms  of  gratitude  and 
love,  and  he  attributes  in  great  part  his  escape  from  the  danger  of 
contracting  a  habit,  the  most  seductive  and  dangerous  to  men  of 
his  temperament,  to  the  gentle,  affectionate  and  considerate  treat- 
ment received  by  him  at  the  hands  of  the  good  man  whose  memory 
he  will  always  venerate. 

Other  instances  of  like  character  might  be  mentioned  as  evi- 
dencing the  character  of  the  man  and  the  cause  of  his  strong  hold 
upon  the  students  of  the  University.  He  seemed  to  enter  into  the 
feelings  and  experience  of  the  boys  and  they  felt  his  sympathy  ere 
he  had  expressed  it,  and  were  on  pleasant  terms  of  intimacy  and 
friendship  with  him,  which  was  productive  of  many  good  results. 
1^0  student  who  knew  him  well  hesitated  to  confide  in  him  and  to 
seek  his  advice,  and  his  easy  affable  and  kindly  reception  of  confi- 
dence endeared  him  to  those  who  sought  his  aid.  The  genial  and 
kindly  humor  which  characterized  him  drew  the  students  close  to 
him,  and  they  regarded  him  with  such  kindly  affection  that  they 
did  not  hesitate  to  perpetrate  practical  jokes  on  him  which  they 
knew  beforehand  he  would  enjoy  as  much  as  the  perpetrators. 
On  one  occasion  he  was  lecturing  to  his  class  on  the  attractive 
power  of  eloquence  and  illustrating  it  by  an  instance  in  which  an 
orator  was  so  eloquent  that  his  audience,  quite  unconscious  of 
what  they  did,  approached  closer  and  closer  until  they  quite  sur- 
rounded him.  As  he  proceeded  to  picture  the  scene  the  students 
by  common  consent,  drew  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  good  doctor, 
discussing  a  theme  of  which  he  never  tired  and  wholly  absorbed 
in  his  entusiasm  until  he  came  to  a  sudden  stop  and  found  the  en- 
tire class  crowded  around  him,  apparently  drawn  to  him  by  the 
attractive  power  of  his  eloquence.  He  looked  at  thew  an  instant 
and  then  burst  into  a  laugh  so  contagious  that  it  swept  the  class- 
room and  put  an  end  to  the  lecture. 

But  the  students,  and  all  others  who  heard  him  frequently, 
recognized  that  at  times  he  was  as  eloquent  as  any  man  of  whom 
he  spoke  and  that  though  his  eloquence  was  not  quite  that  sort 
that  might  pull  an  audience  from  their  seats,  it  was  of  a  high  order 


16 


ADOLFRUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


and  permeated  by  his  consecrated  spirit  and  his  pious  and  useful 
life,  it  attracted  the  affections  of  men,  sometimes  thrilled  them  with 
new  and  strange  emotions,  and  always  excited  in  them  the  spirit 
of  high  and  noble  endeavor. 

Dr.  Mangum  mingled  freely  with  the  students  and  sought  in 
every  way  to  influence  them  for  good.  He  inquired  what  they 
read  outside  of  the  prescribed  course  and  made  valuable  suggestions 
which  were  frequently  of  great  assistance  to  students,  who,  for  the 
first  time,  found  themselves  in  the  presence  of  so  many  books  that 
proper  selection  was  difiicult.  As  illustrating  his  habits  of  inter- 
course with  the  boys  and  his  solicitude  about  the  books  they  read, 
an  anecdote  may  not  be  amiss.  On  one  beautiful  Sunday  morning 
the  doctor,  strolling  about  the  grounds  and  seeing  a  student,  William 
by  name,  but  who  otherwise  shall  be  "  nameless  here  forever  more," 
sitting  engrossed  in  reading  a  book  which  seemed  . to  give  him  a 
great  deal  of  pleasure,  walked  into  the  room  of  the  said  William,  and 
after  the  salutations  of  the  day  had  been  exchanged,  inquired  the 
name  of  the  book  he  was  reading  with  such  evident  satisfaction. 
William  a  little  confused,  answered  promptly  that  it  was  "  Pilgrim's 
Progress,"  and  thereupon  the  doctor  launched  out  into  a  discussion 
of  the  book,  the  purity  of  the  English,  its  splendid  allegory,  and 
the  divine  truth  which  it  so  graphically  portrayed,  and  of  the 
pleasure  it  gave  him  to  see  his  young  friend  so  profitably  engaged 
on  the  Lord's  Day.  And  William  sat  and  assented  to  the  doctor's 
praise  of  the  book,  and  bowed  his  acknowledgement  to  the  compli- 
ment paid  him,  but  never  told  Dr.  Mangum,  nor  did  the  good  doc- 
tor know  that  William  was  not  reading  Bunyan's  Pilgrim's  Progress, 
but  one  of  Mark  Twain's  books.  But  William's  conscience  was 
never  easy  and  whenever  he  afterwards  told  the  incident,  which 
he  frequently  did,  with  every  evidence  of  extreme  enjoyment,  he 
always  added  with  a  sigh,  as  if  to  make  amends  for  the  deception, 
"  G-od  bless  the  Doctor." 

One  of  the  forces  that  went  to  shape  Dr.  Mangum's  character 
was  his  brotherly  interest  in  ''poor  folks."  By  this  class  of  his 
less  favored  neighbors  he  will  long  be  remembered  and  mourned. 
He  was  not  a  man  to  go  and  pray  over  a  sick  person  and  so  make 
an  end.  He  gave  his  sympathy  and  he  shared  his  means  to  the 
last  day  of  his  life.    On  one  occasion  he  lost  the  sale  of  a  house 


AD0LFRU8  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


17 


rather  than  allow  a  poor  woman  who  had  broken  her  arm  and 
begged  for  a  temporary  shelter  there,  to  be  disturbed,  and  she  oc- 
cupied it  thenceforth  to  the  day  of  her  death.  He  believed  in  the 
brotherhood  of  men,  in  the  communion  of  saints.  Among  his 
friends  and  associates  many  a  one  cherishes  elegant  little  notes 
written  by  him,  and  at  his  best. 

Time  would  fail  me  to  particularize  his  other  labors.  He  often 
said  that  he  preached  every  week  to  a  larger  congregation  than 
assembled  anywhere  in  the  country.  He  wrote  regularly  for  the 
E"ashville,  Texas  and  South  Carolina  Christian  Advocates  and  occas- 
ionally for  other  church  and  some  news  papers.  His  pen  was  pro- 
lific, and  he  wrote  with  elegance  and  strength.  In  1858,  while 
pastor  at  Chapel  Hill,  he  wrote  and  j^rinted  a  book  entitled  "Myr- 
tle leaves,  or  tokens  at  the  Tomb."  In  1866  he  wrote  and  publish- 
ed another  book  "The  Safety  Lamp,  or  life  for  the  Narrow  Way" 
and  was  re-writing  it  for  publication  when  he  was  stricken  with 
paralysis.  In  1881,  the  So.  Meth.  Pub.  House  published  a  book  of 
sermons  by  leading  Methodist  preachers  and  Dr.  Mangum  was  the 
N.  C.  preacher  selected  to  furnish  a  sermon.  His  text  was  "The 
Hindrances  of  the  Gospel."  At  the  Centennial  of  Methodism  in 
N.  C,  celebrated  in  Raleiffh,  he  spoke  on  "The  Introduction  of 
Methodism  in  Raleigh  "  and  gave  many  historical  facts  of  great  in- 
terest. Just  after  the  war  he  wrote  a  temperance  serial  story 
"  Percy  Brandon."  He  was  getting  up  the  material  for  the  life  of  his 
kinsman.  Judge  Wiley  P.  Mangum,  at  the  time  he  was  stricken  with 
paralysis.  Mention  has  been  made  of  his  elaborate  history  "Prison 
Life  in  Salisbury."  He  was  a  member  of  the  American  Institute  of 
Christian  Philosophy.  The  limits  of  this  paper  forbid  the  reading 
of  a  letter  from  Rev.  Chas.  F.  Deems,  President  of  that  great  relig- 
ious organization,  expressive  of  his  appreciation  of  Dr.  Mangum's 
talents  and  his  devotion  and  esteem  for  his  many  excellent  traits 
of  character. 

He  believed  in  the  University,  and  deprecated  any  movement 
that  threatened  its  growth  and  greatness.  He  once  wrote — "I  say 
that  while  I  love  the  University  much,  I  love  Methodism  more.  The 
boys  who  go  out  from  the  University  will  exert  a  vast  influence  in 
the  State.  This  influence  is  sure  to  be  secured  by  some  one  denom- 
ination or  several  denominations.  The  question  is:  Will  the 
Methodists  claim  and  realize  their  share." 


18  ADOLPRUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


For  one  hundred  years  this  University  has  exerted  greater 
influence  upon  the  destiny  of  the  people  of  North  Carolina  than 
any  other  agency.  Dr.  Mangum  was  firmly  of  the  opinion  that  his 
church  should  be  as  strong  as  possible  at  the  University  and 
should  sustain  it.  He  believed  it  was  not  only  best  for  Christianity 
in  general,  but  best  for  the  Methodist  church.  He  said  repeatedly 
that  he  had  never  known  a  Methodist  student  quit  his  church  by 
reason  of  joining  the  University,  and  that  he  had  seen  many  cases 
where  they  were  made  broader  and  more  influential  by  such  con- 
nection. And  not  only  so,  but  he  had  known  the  church  to  gain 
influential  and  scholarly  young  converts  from  families  in  which 
there  were  no  Methodists.  He  contended  that  for  its  own  sake  it 
was  the  duty  of  the  Methodist  church  to  support  the  University 
and  that  it  could  not  afford  to  fail  in  this  duty.  This  was  no  hobby 
he  rode.  It  was  a  conviction  born  of  wisdom,  and  though  he  may 
have  lost  influence  with  some  zealous  leaders  in  his  denomination 
and  given  up  chances  of  preferment  by  his  insistence  upon  the 
Methodists  earnestly  supporting  the  University,  he  was  endorsed 
by  the  more  liberal  and  progressive  ministers  and  members  of  his 
church. 

He  was  intensely  devoted  to  the  Methodist  church.  He 
regarded  it  as  the  representative  of  Christ  on  earth.  He  remem- 
bered that  Methodism  was  born  in  a  University — one  that  was 
doubly  barricaded  against  anything  like  Methodism  by  the  domi- 
nant power  and  prejudice  of  the  established  church.  It  was  no  ofl- 
spring  of  religious  fervor  without  knowledge.  It  was  called  into 
being  by  Grod  himself  to  purify  the  church,  rid  it  of  its  worldliness, 
and  to  carry  the  gospel  to  the  poor.  The  agencies  for  this  great 
work  of  the  Almighty  were  young  scholars — not  unlettered  men 
of  crude  ideas,  but  trained  students  to  carry  the  gospel  alike  to  the 
spectacled  professor  and  the  ignorant  toiler  in  the  slums  of  London. 
"The  world  is  my  parish,"  was  John  Wesley's  broad  view  of  the 
field  of  Methodist  preachers.  Catching  the  breadth  and  power  of 
so  inspiring  a  faith,  Dr.  Mangum  wanted  to  see  the  Methodist 
church  exert  its  influence  among  students  and  thinkers  exactly  as 
it  does  among  the  lowliest  and  the  most  unlettered.  He  held  that 
to  do  less  was  to  invite  a  lowering  of  Methodism  from  the  high 
plane  upon  which  its  great  founder  had  placed  it,  and  therefore  to 


ADOLPRUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


Id 


circumscribe  its  usefulness.  The  wisdom  of  his  belief  is  already 
apparent.  The  University,  strictly  undenominational  and  knowing 
no  sect,  is,  strictly  speaking,  as  much  a  Christian  institution  as 
Trinity  College,  Wake  Forest  or  Davidson.  The  only  difference 
between  them  all  in  regard  to  religion  is  that  in  the  University 
teachers  and  pupils  from  all  the  denominations  meet  on  a  common 
Christian  plane  and  in  the  denominational  colleges  they  meet  on  a 
sectarian  plane.  Both  have  their  appointed  missions  to  perform, 
and  there  ought  to  exist  no  antagonism  between  them.  This  was 
the  position  Dr.  Mangum  exemplified  in  his  life,  in  his  writings, 
and  in  his  teachings. 

It  must  not  be  inferred  from  the  intensity  of  his  devotion  to 
Methodism  that  Dr.  Mangum  was  an  illiberal  Christian.  While  he 
was  strongly  loyal  to  Methodism,  he  was  always  ready  to  concede 
the  good  in  other  denominations.  His  last  sermon  was  preached 
in  the  Presbyterian  church  in  Newbern.  The  only  thing  which 
roused  his  indignation,  was  what  he  considered  using  the  church 
in  order  to  obtain  power,  whether  political,  social,  or  otherwise. 
He  was  always  ready  to  denounce  such  attempts  in  severe  terms. 

But  my  memoir  grows  too  long.  I  must  compress  the  details 
of  his  last  days.  I  shall  never  forget  the  shock  I  experienced 
early  in  December,  1888.  At  Newbern  in  attendance  upon 
the  annual  Conference,  I  had  met  Dr.  Mangum  who  took  a 
deep  interest  in  the  proceedings.  On  Monday  morning,  as  I  was 
going  to  the  depot  to  take  the  train,  the  report  came  that  Dr. 
Mangum  was  suffering  from  a  stroke  of  paralysis.  It  was  soon 
learned  that  it  was  partial  and  that  hopes  were  entertained  for 
his  recovery.  Loving  friends  gathered  around  him  at  the  station 
and  loving  hands  assisted  him  into  the  cars.  He  sat  by  his  daugh- 
ter very  quietly,  his  pinched  face  evincing  pain.  There  was  no 
word  of  repining.  He  tried  submissively  to  suffer  the  will  of  Cod. 
At  Coldsboro,  a  few  of  his  best  friends,  young  men  he  had  known 
in  college,  came  to  see  him  to  evidence  their  affection  by  any 
slight  service  they  might  render.  As  they  shook  his  hand  in  affec- 
tionate farewell,  he  could  restrain  himself  no  longer,  but  the  tears 
coursed  down  his  cheeks  and  his  emotion  was  so  great  he  could 
not  speak. 

He  came  to  his  home  in  this  "Sweet  Auburn."    The  student 


20  ADOLPHUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


body  and  the  faculty  were  deeply  touched  by  his  affliction 
and  lost  no  opportunity  of  showing  their  sympathy.  Days  drag- 
ged slowly  along  into  months,  and  before  commencement  he  had 
gained  much  of  his  strength  and  began  to  feel  that  he  would  be 
able  to  take  his  place  in  the  class-room  the  next  session.  When 
the  boys  returned  in  August  he  resumed  his  duties,  but  it  was  not 
with  his  old  time  vigor  and  it  was  not  long  before  it  became  appar- 
ent that  his  strength  was  spent  and  that  his  days  were  numbered. 
His  will  power  kept  him  up,  but  with  the  new  year  he  became  too 
feeble  to  teach.  He  suffered  greatly,  but  with  christian  fortitude. 
During  his  last  illness,  when  his  body  was  racked  with  pain,  and 
nothing  else  could  afford  him  relief,  his  daughter  would  read  to 
him  from  the  German  hymn — 

Commit  thou  all  thy  griefs 

And  ways  into  His  hands, 
To  His  sure  trust  and  tender  care, 

Who  earth  and  heaven  commands. 

And  also  from  that  other  inspiring  hymn — 

Give  to  the  w^inds  thy  fears  •, 

Hope  and  be  undismayed ; 
God  hears  thy  sighs  and  counts  thy  tears  5 

God  shall  lift  up  thy  head. 

The  reading  of  these  hymns  seemed  to  give  him  courage  and 
help  him  to  fix  his  reliance  fully  upon  God. 

He  steadily  failed,  and  at  eight  o'clock  p.  m.  on  the  10th  of 
May  he  lost  conscionsness.  On  the  night  of  May  10th  he  said  to 
his  wife  and  daughters  that  it  was  bed  time  and  he  would  go  to 
sleep.  He  kissed  them  each  good  night,  turned  over  on  the  bed, 
lost  consciensness  and  never  woke  again  until  his  eyes  rested  on 
the  splendor  of  his  heavenly  home.  He  lost  consciensness  on  Sat- 
urday, but  did  not  die  until  Monday. 

The  funeral  services  were  held  in  the  Methodist  church  in  this 
place,  and  students,  professors  and  citizens  paid  the  last  mark  of 
respect  to  an  instructor,  friend  and  companion,  who,  after  a  well 
spent  and  useful  life,  had  entered  into  that  rest  which  remaineth 
to  the  people  of  God.  His  death,  at  home  surrounded  by  those  he 
loved  most  tenderly,  was  in  accordance  with  the  way  he  wished  to 
die.  When  at  college,  only  nineteen  years  old,  he  wrote  a  poem 
"  Where  I  wish  to  Die  "  which  is  preserved  in  his  scrap  book.  His 


AB0LFIIU8  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM.  21 


own  death  was  a  fulfilment  of  that  youthful  poem  which  I  do  not 
quote  for  its  literary  qualities  but  to  show  how  God  permitted  him 
to  fall  asleep  in  the  way  his  youthful  fancy  had  pictured  as  an 
ideal  death. 


"WHERE  I  WISH  TO  DIE." 

Ohl    When  the  hour  of  death  shall  come, 

I  do  not  wish  to  be 
Amid  the  gay  and  frolicsome, 

Whose  hearts  are  filled  with  glee. 

I  do  not  wish  to  breathe  my  last 

In  wealth  and  luxury, 
With  hearts  with  anxious  care  oppressed, 

Or  filled  with  revelry. 

I  do  not  wish  to  die  upon 

The  blood  stained  battle  plain. 

Midst  cannon's  roar  and  war  cloud's  din. 
The  wounded  and  the  slain. 


I  could  not  be  content  to  die 

Upon  the  ocean  deep, 
While  stormy  waves  are  swelling  high. 

And  tempests  fiercely  sweep. 

I  would  not  die  away  from  home. 

Away  from  every  friend. 
While  none  but  strangers  near  me  come, 

To  see  my  poor  life  end. 

But  oh  1    I  wish  to  fall  asleep. 

Beneath  the  shaded  cot. 
While  evening  zephyrs  gently  creep 

Around  the  silent  spot. 

With  friends  to  sooth  my  aching  heart, 

With  Jesus  standing  near ; 
Oh  !    I  could  then  from  life  depart 
Unmoved  by  pain  or  fear. 
E.  M.  College,  Oct.  10,  1853. 


22  ADOLFRUS  WILLIAMSON  MANGUM. 


In  the  Chapel  Hill  cemetery  the  remains  of  this  good  man 
await  the  resurrection.  A  plain  marble  shaft  marks  his  last  resting 
place,  and  upon  it  is  an  inscription  from  the  Bible  which  was  his 
motto  through  life,  l^ot  a  great  while  before  his  death  he  told 
his  wife  that  he  wanted  no  inscription  upon  his  tomb  that  would 
tell  of  his  achievements,  which  he  reckoned  as  naught  except  as 
they  had  been  blessed  of  God.  "But,"  said  he,  "when  I  am  dead 
and  can  no  more  put  my  hand  in  love  upon  the  shoulders  of  the 
students  and  give  them  loving  admonition,  and  when  no  more  I 
can  preach  the  riches  of  the  gospel  in  the  pulpit,  I  shall  want  still 
to  preach  to  all  who  look  upon  my  grave."  And  his  wife  put  as 
the  inscription  on  hie  plain,  simple  tombstone  the  motto  of  his  life: 
"  In  all  thy  ways  acknowledge  Him  and  He  will  direct  thy  paths." 


